Recently, a Miss America contestant was asked, "What's the best advice you've ever received?" She responded, "There will always be someone prettier than you, smarter than you and more talented than you. Make sure you're not standing next to her on the stage."

The audience erupted in applause and the host praised this good strategy. But watching from home, I couldn't help but feel sad about this stark reality.

So often we find contentment in drawing comparisons that paint us in a favorable light. Yet standing next to someone who is more talented, has more money, is more athletic, has a nicer car or house and a perfect family can make us feel sad and envious. And if we applied this "advice" of steering clear of those who seem a little more fortunate than us, we'd have to hide in a cocoon!

So what's the secret to contentment? The apostle Paul—having been stripped of everything, thrown in jail and shipwrecked—learned the secret of contentment. Here's what he says in Philippians 4:11-13 (CEV): "I am not complaining about having too little. I have learned to be satisfied with whatever I have. I know what it is to be poor or to have plenty, I have lived under all kinds of conditions. I know what it means to be full or to be hungry, to have too much or too little. Christ gives me the strength to face anything."

Just like Paul, we can learn to be satisfied with who we are, what we have and where we're going; therein lies true contentment. If you're struggling to find contentment today, you can meditate on these three Bible verses about God's goodness:

Psalm 139:13-14 (CEV)

You are the one who put me together inside my mother's body, and I praise you because of the wonderful way you created me. Everything you do is marvelous! Of this I have no doubt.

Hebrews 13:5 (GNTD)

Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, "I will never leave you; I will never abandon you."

Matthew 6:25-26 (CEV)

I tell you not to worry about your life. Don't worry about having something to eat, drink, or wear. Isn't life more than food or clothing? Look at the birds in the sky! They don't plant or harvest. They don't even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren't you worth more than birds?